I can't speak for the rest of the country, but where I live $70k is about what I'd need to maintain a middle-class lifestyle, make meaningful payments towards d

I can't speak for the rest of the country, but where I live $70k is about what I'd need to maintain a middle-class lifestyle, make meaningful payments towards debt, save up for a down payment on a house, stop worrying about financial emergencies, start building a savings account, and still have a little bit of spending money. If I didn't have to worry about all of those things, nearly every aspect of my life would be improved. As you said, once we take care of the important things, everything else becomes merely a "nice to have."